The Mangosteen

The mangosteen fruit is smooth, round, dark-purple to red-purple on the outside and purplish-white on the inside. The inside is broken up among 4 to 8 triangular segments of snow-white, juicy, soft flesh. The fruit may be seedless or have 1 to 5 fully developed seeds. Instead of peeling it like an orange, a mangosteen is typically opened by pressing firmly or twisting the outside until it breaks apart. The hard rind can be nearly one inch thick.

The fruit was probably first domesticated in Thailand or Burma. Currently it is heavily cultivated in Thailand, Southern Vietnam and Burma, throughout Malaya and Singapore. The tree has been unable to grow successfully in Hawaii, California and Florida due to unfavorable soils and temperatures and its need for large quantities of rainfall.

Mangosteens are usually eaten fresh as dessert though the fleshy segments are sometimes canned. Apparently they lose their delicate flavor in canning, especially if pasteurized. Sometimes jams are made and the seeds can be eaten as well. The rind is rich in pectin and can also be made into a jelly. In the United States (except for Hawaii) they have been difficult to find fresh due to import concerns and so are mostly consumed as part of a variety of different beverages.

In Asia, medicinal uses of the mangosteen abound. The sliced and dried rind is powdered and administered to overcome dysentery, diarrhea, cystitis, gonorrhea and gleet. . Made into an ointment, it is applied on eczema and other skin disorders. Filipinos employ a decoction of the leaves and bark as a febrifuge and to treat thrush, diarrhea, dysentery and urinary disorders. In Malaya, an infusion of the leaves, combined with unripe banana and a little benzoin is applied to the wound of circumcision. A root decoction is taken to regulate menstruation. A bark extract called "amibiasine", has been marketed for the treatment of amoebic dysentery.

What makes mangosteen a 'superfruit'? The rind has been found to contain the compounds alpha-mangostin, beta-mangostin, garcinone B, and garcinone E, which are collectively called xanthones. Laboratoy studies suggest xanthones have anti-cancer effects when they are studied in test tubes. Mangosteen has also been found to have anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antifungal, and antiseptic properties in test tube studies. What happens in test tube studies may not necessarily happen when the fruit is ingested orally. In addition, some of the properties attributed to the xanthone content may actually be obtained from compounds called tannins in the rind. All plants contain tannins. Studies of xanthones are in the very early stages and no real conclusions regarding health benefits have been established.

The fruit of the mangosteen is the most flavorful part however, it is the rind that contains the xanthones and other valuable phytochemicals. Therefore, to gain full value from this fruit, you need to be drinking juice products that contiain a whole food puree. In this case the color will be purple.

An interesting side note about the mangosteen is that it is commonly known as "The Queen of fruits" in parts of southeast Asia, notably Singapore and Malaysia. It is believed to have "cooling" properties that counteract the "heatiness" of durians, the so-called "King of fruits". The fruiting season of these two fruits coincides.

photo source: http://ww2.mymandura.com/images/mangosteen-large2.png